Let us hope that the bold stances against Trump by Governor Wes Moore of Maryland and Mayor Brandon Johnson of Chicago spread as fast as his administration’s intent to impose a military presence in the nation’s major cities. That goes especially where there’s a Black populace or where a Black man or woman leads the government.
Moore has been steadfast in his challenge of Trump’s lies, most recently his claim that Moore, during their meeting last year at the Army-Navy game, called him “the greatest president of my lifetime.” Moore said in a radio interview that the conversation never happened. On Monday, Fox News aired footage showing that Moore never praised Trump. The video also showed that both parties did not hug each other, rather they both shook hands as Moore welcomed him to Maryland.
During an appearance on MSNBC, Moore ripped into Trump’s charges about Baltimore’s public safety issues, refuting claims about crime in the city. He told the press that “they have not walked our streets. They have not been in our communities and they are more than happy to keep making these repeating tropes about us.” His outrage is sure to intensify with the news that on Sunday the National Guard in the nation’s capital have begun carrying weapons.
Johnson was equally perturbed and outraged about Trump’s threat to deploy the National Guard to Chicago. His rationale, as if he had a legitimate one, is to combat crime. “The guard is not needed,” Johnson told the press. “This is not the role of our military. The brave men and women who signed to serve our country did not sign to occupy American cities.”
As with Moore’s defiance, citing stats to show a decline in crime, Johnson said Chicago police crime data from earlier this month show murders are down 31% from the same time last year, shootings have dropped by 36 percent and vehicle thefts are down 26%.
In contrast to Trump’s initiatives, according to the FBI, cities in Republican-leaning states often have some of the highest crime rates, but we know they are not low hanging fruit for Trump. And if he plans to target New York City, the NYPD recently announced a record low of shootings and murders for the first five months of 2025. Moreover, Mayor Eric Adams would complicate any military move, given his relationship with the Oval Office.
But wherever Trump deploys the military next, we hope the leaders there are as defiant and bold as Moore and Johnson. This is the kind of resolve that is absolutely required to halt the anti-democratic moves of a so-called leader who is the epitome of stupidity.